


Beach Day

by Kageyamallama



Category: Skulduggery Pleasant - Derek Landy
Genre: I don't like sand, It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere, Kickin ass and takin names, beachy beach, skulduggery pleasant - Freeform, swimmy swim
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:06:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23368906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kageyamallama/pseuds/Kageyamallama
Summary: It's a beach day, Skul-man and Val at the beach - what more do you want?
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	Beach Day

**Author's Note:**

> Edited 19/04/2020: Just a few spelling mistakes.
> 
> Quarantine made me do it.  
> Lol jk, I'm an essential worker.

Beaches, sand, sweat, the wind running fingers through untied hair and sea salt caught in open mouths, stretched over laughter. Normal people, Valkyrie thinks, normal people summers include ice cream dripping down chins and awkward first dates. Parties out in the dunes, bonfires, dreaded family gatherings.

She had none of this, crouching in the dark, peering into the window of their latest suspect from her vantage point on the opposing rooftop.

‘Remind me again why we’re doing this?’ Valkyrie asked, staring through into the apartment building. It was messy but well lit, the curtains drawn all the way back, allowing them to see straight into the living room.

‘Crouching in the dark?’ Skulduggery asked from his position behind her.

‘No, stalking this idiot. He hasn’t moved off his couch in like two hours.’

‘We need to keep eyes on him.’

‘It’s hot.’ She whined.

‘Is it?’ Skulduggery genuinely couldn’t tell, being a skeleton and all.

‘It is.’ Valkyrie said firmly, sweat dripping from her brow proving her point.

‘Take off your jacket.’ He suggested.

‘And risk getting my arms cut off?’

‘Excellent point. Keep it on.’

Valkyrie sagged in the shadows but keeping her eyes trained on the figure in the window, wiping the sweat off her face before it dripped into her eyes.

‘Is that movement I see?’ The man on the couch stood up, stretching as he lifted his arms way above his head, leaning back slightly, then sat down again, picking a bag od chips off the floor and shoving a handful into his mouth.

‘I hate this.’ She groaned.

‘You love this.’

‘I love this when there’s _punching._ ’

‘Ah, youth.’

‘I’m so bored.’ Valkyrie pouted, crossing her arms over her chest, leaning her shoulder against the building beside her.

‘How’s training with Tanith going?’ Skulduggery asked, making idle conversation while watching the man with sandy blonde hair eat from a questionable bag of chips.

‘Great,’ Valkyrie said, watching the same scene as Skulduggery, grimacing a little as crumbs fell over the man’s chest. ‘Still getting used to the whole magic thing.’

‘Not having second thoughts?’

‘God no.’

‘Don’t miss school?’

‘School doesn’t have magic, and punching, and _you_.’

‘Ah, I’m flattered.’

‘I mean, just look at you,’ She continued. ‘Who wouldn’t want to hand around the weirdest person ever.’

‘You can stop now.’

‘You’re a bloody skeleton for heaven’s sake. Of course I don’t want to go to school.’

‘I got the point.’

Valkyrie laughed, quietly as to not give their position in the shadows away and nudged him with her shoulder.

‘When this is over, I want ice-cream.’

‘You got it.’

‘Can we go to the beach?’

‘The beach?’ He asked, tone indicating a raised brow.

‘Come on,’ She huffed. ‘It’s summer!’

Skulduggery looked down at himself, disguiseless, black suit blending him into the dark and looked back up to meet her eyes.

‘Maybe.’ He said after a minute of thinking.

Valkyrie danced with joy in her head, she’d never do that in from of Skulduggery. Instead, she smiled with satisfaction.

‘That wasn’t a yes, you know.’ Skulduggery said, a smirk in his voice, watching her smile.

‘Yes, it was.’ Valkyrie smirked but her face fell when movement caught her eye. ‘He’s up.’

‘Indeed.’ Skulduggery re-focused back on the case, watching as the man grabbed his coat, keys from the floor as he slipped his phone into his back pocket and walked out of his apartment door.

They stalked him for a few miles, sticking close to the shadows, jumping from rooftop to rooftop, Skulduggery wrapped his arms around Valkyrie’s waist and used the air to propel them forward.

They watched him as he turned down different alleys and once they ran out of rooftops to jump, they floated down into the alley behind him, Skulduggery manipulating the air to soften their landing. The guy didn’t look behind him and they continued to pursue him until he greeted someone behind a suspicious-looking club, they jumped back behind a metal garbage disposal unit and listened.

‘Hey, Ronnie.’ The sandy-blonde haired man said.

‘What’s up, Blaze?’

‘Nothin’ much man, you got what I asked for?’

Ronnie opened up with jacket to show the man, now revealed to be Blaze, an item obscured from view.

‘Did you bring the cash?’

Blaze showed Ronnie the wad of cash from his jacket pocket and they traded.

‘Thanks.’ Blaze said, turning and walking back the way he came.

‘Whatever.’ Ronnie waved Blaze off, disappearing from the ally without a trace.

Skulduggery stepped out of the shadows and, before the other man could react, punched him square in the nose.

‘What the hell?’ Blaze staggered back, hands flying up to his face as his watery eyes locked onto Skulduggery’s sockets. ‘The skeleton detective, I’ve heard about you.’

‘Naturally.’ Skulduggery replied, clicking his fingers and catching the flame.

He threw the fire at Blaze and he dropped whatever he was holding to dodge out of the way, Blaze didn’t notice it roll away from him nor the elemental girl who picked it up.

Blaze rolled and kicked Skulduggery’s legs out from underneath him but instead of falling, Skulduggery caught himself with air while Blaze stood. The air propelled Skulduggery forward, effectively dodging Blaze’s fist and giving him the time advantage to roundhouse him in the face. Blaze did a little spin before dropping to the ground, getting on his back while holding out his hands in surrender.

‘Okay, okay. There’s no need for violence.’

‘There’s all the need for violence.’ Valkyrie replied, stepping out from the shadows to join Skulduggery, throwing and catching the object in her left hand.

‘You brought the girl too?’ Blaze sagged.

‘My colleague does what she wants.’

Valkyrie grinned at him, passing Skulduggery the item.

‘Blaze, you’re under arrest.’

‘Why?’ He asked, crawling backward as Valkyrie walked towards him.

‘Don’t act stupid, you know what this is.’

‘I want a lawyer.’

‘Are you actually an idiot?’ She asked. ‘We’re not mortals, there are no lawyers. Just sensitives who’ll pick your brain apart and spit out the remains.

Blaze paled a little and didn’t struggle as he was dragged out of the alley by the teenager in black and the well-dressed skeleton.

‘So,’ Valkyrie asked, once they were all settled into the Bentley. ‘Beach day?’

‘I don’t remember agreeing to that.’

She gave him a pointed look and Skulduggery relented.

‘When do you want to go.’

‘Tomorrow?’

‘Fine, the beach it is.’ Skulduggery sighed.

‘And ice-cream.’

‘And ice-cream.’ He affirmed, nodding in agreement.

The pair dropped Blaze and the very illegal black-market magic booster he had purchased off of Ronnie and a dispatch of Cleavers were sent to locate and apprehend Ronnie while another dispatch was tasked to search the club for any other illicit black-market items.

Once they were done, Skulduggery left Valkyrie at the pier and she jogged the rest of the way home. She practised shooting herself up through her open bedroom window, jumping up a few times before she successfully rolled over the windowsill and into her bedroom.

‘Hello.’ The reflection greeted.

‘Hey.’ She greeted back, awkwardly. Still not used to the reflection being in her space, having her face. 

‘Are you ready to resume your life?’ It asked.

Yes.’

Valkyrie returned to Stephanie, putting the reflection back in the mirror as she pulled on her oversized sweatshirt and crawled into bed, asleep before her head hit the pillow.

\---

The next morning hit her like an old-fashioned freight train. Light blaring, the sun streaming through her window, horn hollering, her dad shouting a number of undecipherable phrases before a loud slam of a door. She groaned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and padded down to the bathroom to loosen her muscles in the shower.

‘Is that you, honey?’ Melissa shouted up the stairs.

‘Yeah, I’m going to shower, be down in a minute.’ Stephanie shouted back, closing the bathroom door and stepping out of her sweat-soaked clothes.

The shower was hot, probably too hot, the water turning her pale skin a tomato red but helping her aching body. She turned the faucet off once dirt and sweat from the night before was scrubbed from her skin. Stephanie tried but failed to dry herself with magic, muttering curses as she snatched a towel off the rack in defeat, drying herself off the rest of the way. She brushed her teeth and padded back to her own bedroom, dressing in mortal clothes.

‘Good morning.’ Melissa greeted, sipping coffee from one of the living room couches, an open book in her lap.

‘Mmm, what time is it? Stephanie sleepily asked.

Her mum looked at her watch. ’10:30. You slept for ages.’

‘Must’ve been tired.’ The bowls clanged as she grabbed one from the kitchen drawer, balancing everything to the lounge, where she plonked down at the coffee table, fixing herself a cereal breakfast.

‘I don’t see why; you’ve been doing nothing all summer.’

Stephanie shrugged her shoulders and shovelled more cereal into her hungry mouth.

‘Why don’t you get out and do something? Call up a friend, maybe Hannah. Get some sunlight.’

‘I already did, beach day.’

‘Which one?’

‘Dunno yet.’

‘How are you getting there?’

‘Bus probably.’

‘If you need a lif-‘

‘Mum, it’s alright, we want to walk around.’

‘Well,’ She relented. ‘If you say so.’

‘I say so.’ Stephanie laughed.

‘You’ve got your phone? Call me if you girls need a lift.’

‘I will. What are you and dad doing?’

‘Your father already left for work and I’m going in to help out. You know ever since his assistant left?’

‘Yeah, I know. It’s awkward when I walk past her.’

‘The peanut suit _is_ a bit much.’

They both laughed.

Stephanie got up to rinse her dishes, leaving them in the dishwasher and making her way back upstairs. Her phone was ringing.

‘Hey.’ She answered.

‘Good morning.’ Skulduggery replied. ‘Beach day?’

‘Beach day.’

‘Are your parents’ home?’

‘Mum is, I’ll meet you at the pier.’

‘I’ll be there.’ Skulduggery promised and hung up.

Excitement swirled through Valkyrie’s stomach; she couldn’t remember the last time she’d gone to the beach. She grabbed her bathers, wallet, phone and house keys, shoving them into a backpack, slinging it over her shoulder as she raced downstairs.

‘I’ll see you later!’ Stephanie called out, letting the door swing shut behind her, barely catching her mum shout back at her.

‘Have a good time!’

Valkyrie booked it to the pier, trying not to let her smile break out over her face. She must look manic, grinning while running, familiar faces passing her, giving smiles and waves in return to nods.

Skulduggery had his ridiculous disguise on, leaning up against the hood of the Bentley. Instead of crazy, curly red hair, he had opted for a black wig, big dark sunglasses with a black scarf to match.

‘Very beach appropriate,’ Valkyrie commented as she ran up to him.

‘This is my beach-suit.’

‘You have a beach-suit?’

‘I do now.’

Valkyrie scoffed, rolling her eyes and opening the passenger door, settling down in the soft, plush leather. Skulduggery followed, sliding the keys in the ignition, turning.

‘Beach day!’ Valkyrie hollered.

‘Beach day.’ Skulduggery repeated, much less enthusiastic.

The Bentley looked out of place in one of the beach’s parking lots, the gleaming black vintage nestled in between mini-vans and rusted, modern-day metal.

‘Well, now what?’ He asked, tilting his head at Valkyrie.

‘Beach day!’ She said, scrambling out of the car to feel the muggy beach breeze over her features.

‘So you’ve mentioned.’ Skulduggery muttered to nobody in particular.

Skulduggery followed Valkyrie down through the sand and he watched as she dipped her feet into the shallow, surprisingly there wasn’t a lot of people at the beach just a few surfers and some laying on the sand.

‘Not going swimming?’ He asked.

‘I just wanted to feel the temperature first.’

‘Is it nice?’

‘Yeah, I’m going to go change.’

‘I guess I’ll find somewhere to sit then.’

‘Get some sunlight, I’ll be back soon.’ Valkyrie laughed, sprinting back up the dunes before Skulduggery could reply.

Skulduggery didn’t sit, his suit was expensive. Instead, he stood with his arms crossed over his chest, looking out at the waves. A couple jogged past, gawking at him as they did, their golden retriever trailing behind them, stopping for a second too long to sniff at the air in Skulduggery’s direction.

‘Don’t even think about it.’ Skulduggery mumbled, the couple called the dog’s name and, much to Skulduggery’s relief, it ran off in their direction.

‘Do dogs scare you?’ Valkyrie asked, walking up behind him.

‘Not particularly.’ He hesitated.

‘Don’t lie.’

‘I’m not lying.’ He was definitely lying.

Valkyrie laughed at him. ‘Try not to get buried while I swim some laps.’

Skulduggery grumbled a little when he was dumped with all Valkyrie’s stuff, watching her run off into the shore, wading deeper and deeper until she dived under.

The water wasn’t cold but it wasn’t warm either, Valkyrie didn’t mind as she pushed against the water’s resistance, breaking the surface to gulp in a breath before diving back under again in a rinse-lather-repeat loop until she was far enough out that Skulduggery had blended in with the sand entirely. Just a little black and white speck among the beige, she let herself float for a while, feeling the waves push and pull her. She pushed out with her magic, feeling the ocean swell beneath her back, but she wasn’t skilled enough to carry herself back to shore. Instead, she made ripples in the water with her air until her stomach growled at her and she dived under, swimming back to shore.

‘Did you have fun?’ Skulduggery asked.

‘Immense fun, towel?’ She held out her hand.

Skulduggery rifled through her bag.

‘There isn’t one.’

‘What, are you serious?’ Valkyrie could’ve sworn she packed one.

‘Dead serious.’

She snorted at the pun, but it was short-lived.

‘What do I do now?’ She whined.

Valkyrie had the feeling that if Skulduggery was less skeleton and fleshier, he’d be raising an eyebrow at her as if to say, ‘well, I don’t know, how do you think an _elemental_ would dry themselves off?’ She glowered.

‘I can’t do it properly yet.’ She mumbled.

‘Try, there’s no one around.’

Valkyrie sighed and tried, holding her palm up, concentrating on how the water particles sat on her skin, how drenched her hair was, how the sand clung to her feet and up her shins. She reached out, looking for the space where everything connected, where she had the power to manipulate the air. She grabbed hold of that space and focused on what she wanted it to do.

Instead of drying herself off, like she wanted, she sent a particularly strong wave of air downwards, blowing sand all over them both.

‘Spectacular.’ Skulduggery commented, after giving himself a moment of composure. ‘You got sand in my eyes.’

She glared and he sighed, raising his own hand to dry her.

‘My hair is still wet.’ Valkyrie complained, pulling her clothes back on over her swimmers.

‘If you want it dried, do it yourself.’

‘Do you want me to blow more sand at you?’

‘Not particularly.’ Skulduggery gave Valkyrie her bag back, turning on his heel, back to the safety of concrete, leaving her hair wet.

Valkyrie stuck her tongue out at his back but followed behind him anyway.

‘I saw that.’ Skulduggery said, not turning around.

‘No, you didn’t.’ Valkyrie hesitated.

‘No, I didn’t.’ He agreed. ‘But I knew.’

Valkyrie rolled her eyes at his smug tone. They trekked back up the dunes, back to the parking lot where the Bentley sat, waiting for their return. A few pedestrians side-eyed them as they walked.

‘Ice cream.’ She simply said, dumping her bag in the Bentley’s boot.

‘Do we have to?’ Skulduggery sagged a little. ‘People are _staring_.’

‘Well, it’s your fault for wearing a suit to the beach.’

‘It’s a _beach-suit_ ’

‘It’s a classic beach day tradition.’ Valkyrie whined, knowing she’d win the argument.

‘Fine.’ He relented. Valkyrie smiled, laughing as the sun hit her dried skin, feeling entirely too nostalgic.

The ice cream parlour wasn’t too far from the beach, a few streets down, the door had a little bell that jingled when they entered. Valkyrie was immediately hit with a wave of coolness from the air conditioning in the shop, she shivered a little, her skin pricking as she walked up to the counter, Skulduggery behind her, eyeing off the other customers in the corner from under his disguise.

‘What can I get you?’ The bored employee asked, not even bothering to look up from his phone.

‘I’ll get a two-scoop chocolate mint in a cup.’ Valkyrie ordered.

‘That’ll be $6.50.’ The guy behind the counter said, almost automatically, putting his phone down and looking up for the first time since they entered.

‘Oh my god.’ He blurted, looking at Skulduggery’s disguise.

‘Is there something wrong?’ Skulduggery calmly asked.

‘Uhhhhh.’ The kid stared for a second, mouth gaping open like a fish, but quickly looked away when he caught himself.

‘Something on my face?’ He asked as Valkyrie elbowed him in the ribs an obvious ‘shut up.’

‘Nope. $6.50’ He wheezed out.

Valkyrie looked up at Skulduggery expectantly.

‘What?’ Skulduggery asked.

‘Well?’ She questioned. ‘Pay the good man.’ Gesturing to the still flabbergasted teen.

‘Why do I have to? You’re the one eating.’

‘You get paid more than I do.’

‘You don’t even get paid.’

‘Exactly.’

Skulduggery sighed, fishing his wallet from his blazer pocket, paying for the dessert in exact change.

‘Happy?’ He asked when Valkyrie grabbed the cup, spooning the first slightly melted heap into her mouth.

‘Positively elated.’ She replied around a mouthful of the cold deliciousness.

‘Good.’

They both walked out of the establishment and back the way they came.

‘What does it taste like?’ Skulduggery questioned.

‘Ice-cream.’

‘Ah.’

‘Like,’ She thought for a second. ‘Mint with chocolate.’

‘You’re so very observant.’

‘I learnt from the best.’ Valkyrie shrugged, smiling smugly, spooning another mouthful into her mouth.

‘I am the best.’

‘I wasn’t referring to you.’ She jabbed.

‘Who were you referring to?’

Valkyrie said nothing, walking off ahead.

‘Valkyrie, tell me.’ Skulduggery shouted after her, but Valkyrie just laughed.

‘You’d better finish that before we leave, I don’t want stains in my car.’ He pouted as well as a skeleton could.

Valkyrie laughed at him but complied, finishing it all before they got to the parking lot, throwing away her trash before Skulduggery unlocked the passenger side door.

‘Did you have fun?’ Skulduggery asked, backing out of the lot.

‘Beach day.’ She enthusiastically replied but Skulduggery could hear the hint of tiredness in her voice, she held out her fist.

‘Beach day.’ He replied back, bumping his fist to hers, watching a grin stretch out on her face.

**Author's Note:**

> Please wash your hands and stay safe.


End file.
